Korak

Ok first a little backstory,I was squirrel hunting along a creek earlier this year and doing quite well killing them little tree rats.I was moving along and I saw a Beagle standing in shin deep water and not moving I thought to myself that this was a mite strange cause it was cold,dang cold.Anyway come to find out he was hung up in a trap on somebody's trap line right on the edge of my property.I extracted him from the trap and he was wearing a collar with a phone number on it,I took him home doctored him up the best I could and called the number.the owner came and got him and promised me a beagle pup for my troubles out of this male and his female.Well they were born about 3 wks. ago and it won't be long and I will have 2 pups free of charge out of proven runners.
I've hunted behind Beagles most of my life my dad has always had beagles but he never trained them he ran them with dogs that were already running and hoped they learned what the heck to do.I don't want maybe I want dogs that will hunt and not run off game.I want them to hunt rabbits and I want to train them properly to do so.What are some training aids and where do I get them?What will be my best bet for training i.e techniques,time,etc.?Any advice from you expierienced houndsmen will be greatly appreciated.

Korak

Well and here I thought there would be some folks chiming in with some advice .

coolbrze0

We're going into the best time of year to train - Spring when there's tons of dew on the ground and scenting conditions are great. 1st, it's good to hear the pups are from hunting stock. Let your pups be pups fora while. Spend the early days working on obedience and training around the house. I start mine early, but make it fun for them! Get a tame rabbit and let them chase him around when they're about 3 months old. Do this every other day or so, they should start opening (barking) while chasing him before long. When you see a rabbit in the yard or at the farm, take the pups over to where he was and let them smell him. It'll take them at least afew times of doing this before they start to use their noses. They'll get excited, pop off w/ a few yipes, start happy tailing, etc. Praise them and tell them find him or whatever you want, just make sure they know they're doing good. Don't expect them to run him pretty for a while, it will take time. The more rabbit tracks you feed them, the better. My pups generally have circled their 1st cottontail back to me by 6-7 months but again, I start them a little earlier than most. I have a lot of friends that don't start them until 9+ months old.

Korak

Thanks coolbrze0 I really appreciate the advice,by the way thats a good lookin dog in your avatar pic.

coolbrze0

Thanks! Just holler if you have any other questions.